New Zealand researchers have measured the economic costs of extreme weather events linked to climate change. Their research has found that these occurrences have caused at least $2.8tn (£2.3tn) in damage over the past 20 years, The Guardian has reported.

Although the figures vary drastically year-on-year, the scientists found that storms, floods, heatwaves and droughts have resulted in an average cost of $140bn (£115bn) a year from 2000 to 2019. The latest data shows $280bn in costs in 2022.

The researchers obtained this figure by combining data on how much global heating worsened extreme weather events with economic data on losses. Two-thirds of the damage costs were related to the loss of life, while a third was due to property and other assets being destroyed.

The study also found that 1.2 billion people have been affected by climate change and that the climate crisis has cost $16m (£13m) an hour for the past 20 years. Storms, such as Hurricane H...